MDGB2

I agree with you about carrying disks can be a hassle. I think my disc obsession comes from using them to record on for use 'at home.' Just a shame that you can't drag n drop 1GB of mp3s/atrac files (nearly 20 albums??) on to a player, hassle free. Would only ever need to carry one disc! Can dream for next generation.....if there is one.

I flamin' well do! Don't trust HD players, and 'flash' units too expensive for the storage you get. Although I'm the 'MTV generation' I'm 'old skool' when it comes to audio. Hell, I even enjoy recording in real time! Pity Sony don't get the mp3 compatibility issues sorted with Hi-MD, it would be just the same as a mp3 player, except you only have to pay £5 for 1GB of upgradable memory. May be a second coming......

And I just bought 3 blue Hi-MDs off e-bay for £11. D'oh! Dixons is (usually) never the best place to go for media anyway, always over priced and little available. Only ever seen a handful of the old style discs around meadowhall and parkgate. No blues..... Still can get them on line from amazon (price has gone from £4.99 to £6.99 - weird!) Discountdiscs.co.uk stock them starting from £4.99 (but cheaper if you buy in quantity).

I said like those bitrates, not better than. The Hi-LP codec cannot go as far as higher quality mp3 but can hold its own at the lower end. Still a nicer sound than my cr@ppy cheap MP3 player that I currently use at work, and thats why I see Hi-LP as an alternative for this use. All my other stuff is done in LP2 or Hi-SP.

Harry Potter my ****. I'm not trying to say Hi-LP is acceptable for serious listening (lets face it, that can't be achieved on a portable anyway) and I know Hi-SP is miles better however: This is the first time I've tested Hi-LP with a quality output (~£150 headphones) and it did allright. The basis of this is so I can fit 40+ CDs on two Hi-MDs to use at work/travelling to. For that purpose it is more than exceptable, especially with the new 'Atrac Lossless.' Sounds more like 128-160kbps MP3 than 64kbps audio.

Having had a brief play with 3.3, I can say it is a major improvement over previous versions. The new 'lossless' Atrac codec sounds sweet, although I think it takes up more room. 64kbps (Hi-LP) atrac lossless, 25mb a track? Eh?

Listening to MP3 files that were burned on a CD as .WAV without conversion, then transferred to Hi-LP using Simple Burner2. With a pair of Sennheiser HD590 phones.........wow. Not bad at all, an I'm usually quite picky about mi sound.

MD will always have a higher "kwaii factor" than any solid state/HDD unit. I just like individual discs...

1997, saw rave reviews of the MDS JE-510 deck in What Hi-Fi magazine. Bought as a replacement for my trusty Aiwa AD-F450 tape deck. Blew my mind for both sound quality and incredible editing and re-writing features (remember, this is before CD-RW had hit the market!) Upgraded to the JB920 in 1999, awaiting replacement in form of a Hi-MD deck...

The RH10 looks mighty purrrdy.....

You'd have to be pretty damned unlucky for 200 MDs to fail on you at once! A hard-drive on the other hand....

Mp3 is a garbage micky-mouse format! Rasp. Missed out on a JE780 deck on e-bay yesterday, went for £55. Bugger!

Hopefully including a Hi-Fi deck! How about a portable Hi-MD unit that has an internal 20GB HDD to keep the mp3 brigade happy? Best of both worlds!

There arn't any other alternatives (Oooo....controversial! ) MP3 sounds like a cat being strangled, and even though it is supposedly better sound quality, I don't make compilation CDs because they are such a pain in the bum to do on a computer (unless you want loads of albums taking up valuable space!) Old skool MD deck, just stick a CD in, record, edit, job done!

Only disc I've ever had trouble with are Hi-Space discs. A couple would skip after about an hour, solution - record less than full capacity (bout 50mins) Two out of three hundred and odd ain't bad, damn sight more reliable than CD/DVD-R!

The NH700!

They're not stopping Hi-MD, just moving it more towards the pro market (allegedly.) If this means a deck being built then I welcome it!

The Dog's Danglies

The others saw the Iceberg! Or probably its all due to Sony....

On reboot after installing, a nice screen appeared (but not the dreaded blue one...) that said "Opperating system has detected a fatal error." Nice. Although another re-boot, and starting up SS3.3 to let it configure itself and all seems well. Computers eh?

If only you could get it in Simple Burner..... Disc in, transfer on the fly to any bitrate, job done. No albums cluttering up mi hard drive.

That Kenwood is pretty sweet. Now, if only it had an optical output, IR Remote control and Hi-MD support......

Erm, an Hi-MD Walkman? Just plug it in and use it as a removable storage device.

I wonder if we will see these models outside Japan, but with a USB conection and/or line in. Remember the NH600/D. Mine has line in and an AC adaptor, other countries versions don't. Rasp.

Personally, I think the white phones just make people look like a berk! I shall be using the Sennheiser MX500 (original metalic blue) or PX100 and not bow down to the conformity of sheep!